PITTSBURGH, PA – FC Montreal will face the Riverhounds in Pittsburgh at 7pm on Saturday, at Highmark Stadium.
One week after earning its first point on the road this season in a 0-0 draw in Richmond against the Kickers, the Bleu-blanc-noir will look for another good performance in Pittsburgh.
“It shows that the group is on the right path and that it has the potential to look good, but also to take points against any team in this league,” said head coach Philippe Eullaffroy. “It’s also a better atmosphere since the level of confidence is always higher after a good performance.”
The Riverhounds are the highest scoring team in the USL (27), but also the one that has conceded the most in the Eastern Conference (23). Pittsburgh is solid offensively in the second half, having found the back of the net 19 times.
Pittsburgh is 5th in the East with a record of 4-4-4. The Pennsylvania club also played a US Open Cup fourth round game midweek against DC United, losing 3-1 in overtime after tying 1-1 in regulation.
“It’s a good test against a team with a particular profile,” said Eullaffroy. “It’s an offensive team, but also one that gives up a lot of goals. We have to be good defensively while using all of our offensive qualities. They still showed their defensive toughness against an MLS team Wednesday. Numbers speak for themselves, but we also see that they can defend.”
“We focused on our game plan,” said midfielder Mastanabal Kacher. “We only want to apply our game principles and build on last week’s performance. We have to work hard on both sides of the field, offensively and defensively.”
The Montreal team is playing a second consecutive game on the road. In its most recent match in Richmond, the league recognized the team’s solid performance as two players, Mélé Temguia and Maxime Crépeau, were named to the USL Team of the Week.
FC Montreal’s next game will be against the Wilmington Hammerheads FC, on Thursday June 25, at 2:30pm, at Stade Saputo. Admission is free and you can also stream the game at www.impactmontreal.com/fcmontreal.
